


No escaping your love

by from within (aconite_fic)



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Coffee shop AU (sort of), Dirty Talk, Fluff, M/M, Merlin Rare Pairs, Phone Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-23
Updated: 2014-01-23
Packaged: 2018-01-08 12:06:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1132453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aconite_fic/pseuds/from%20within
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin calls the wrong number and Mordred learns that accidents don’t always happen accidentally.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No escaping your love

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aisjustrunning](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aisjustrunning/gifts).



> Ana! A couple of weeks ago I told you that I was writing “that merdred thing” for you. I don’t know if you figured out I was your glomper. If you hadn’t… surprise? :D
> 
> I was really happy to get to work on your prompt. You deserve ALL the Merlin/Mordred in the world because you absolutely rule(r). :DD ♥ This fic became sort of a mess, but it's a charming one, I hope. 
> 
> Many thanks to Jinx for the beta! She's wonderful at helping me fix my silly mistakes. Any remaining are my own, I can never resist finishing touches before I post something, even if they threaten to ruin the thing. :D
> 
> I also made a little playlist of happy songs to go along with this fic! You can listen to it [here.](http://8tracks.com/nimoa/no-escaping-your-love)

 

~~~

 

“Gwen, fuck, you won’t believe this.”

Mordred frowned and took the phone away from his ear, staring at it for a second. It was strange enough that he’d gotten a call from an unknown number at nearly midnight, but the man on the other side hadn’t even given him a chance to say ‘Hello’ before he started rambling. He heard the tiny voice continue its speech so he put the phone back to his ear.

“…just got back from my date with Lance, and you were wrong, so wrong, it was not a mistake, but the reasons are different from the obvious,” he sounded a little breathless and by the sound of his footsteps Mordred figured out he was ascending a staircase.

Mordred just sat on his bed, dumbfounded. He knew he should say something like ‘wrong number’ or— no, that was the only thing he should say, he shouldn’t be interested in this man and his newly acquired boyfriend. He opened his mouth and it closed around a ‘no’ when the man on the other side asked, “Gwen?”

“Oh,” the man said, clearly confused. “Who is this?”

“Uhm, you called me, shouldn’t you introduce yourself?”

“But that’s Gwen’s number!”

“You got it wrong, mate.”

“But that’s not possible!” The man squawked and Mordred stifled his laughter.  
  
“Clearly, it is.”

“No, you don’t understand,” the man said and paused for a second. There was the click of a door being unlocked and a soft creak as it opened. “I have the number saved on my phone. I’ve called it many times before and I’m a hundred percent sure it was hers. And I haven’t changed anything.”

“That’s… odd,” Mordred suggested, not knowing what to say. “Sorry but—”

“Ow!” The man groaned as a rattle was heard.

“You alright?”

“Yeah, I just… stumbled a little, fortunately the cabinet was here to break my fall… and my hip.” Mordred allowed himself a little chuckle at that and was rewarded with the man’s awkward laughter. “You were saying?”

“Yeah, I… I’m sorry but I’m really not Gwen, so…”

“Right. Would you happen to know her?”

Mordred thought about the girl with lovely hair and kind smile that worked in Morgana’s coffee shop, but he didn’t really know her. And it was highly unlikely that she was the same Gwen the man was talking about, anyway.

“No, sorry.”

“It’s alright,” the man sighed. “I really need her, though.”

“Can’t you send her an e-mail? A facebook message?”

“Internet’s been down since last night.”

“Oh. Condolences.”

“Thanks,” the man chuckled. “Shit, it’s past midnight! I’m so sorry for bothering you that late.”

“It’s alright, it’s not your fault,” Mordred assured him. “I never go to bed early, either way.”

“Yeah, neither do I,” the man chuckled. Mordred grinned to himself.

“Hey, would you like me to send her an e-mail from you or something?” He asked as he sat in front of his computer.

“That would be great, oh my god,” the man said excitedly. “If you could just tell her to call me that would be awesome,” he said before he gave Mordred an e-mail address.

“And whom would she be calling?”

“Right, sorry. I’m Merlin.”

“I’m Mordred.”

“Nice to meet you, Mordred.”

“Likewise,” he said as he was typing. “Congratulations on your new boyfriend, by the way.”

“What?”

“That Lance guy you had a date with?”

“Oh,” Merlin laughed. “No, he’s not my boyfriend. I’m pretty sure he might be Gwen’s soulmate, actually.”

“Oh,” Mordred said. “Those would be the different-than-the-obvious reasons, then.”

“Yeah,” Merlin laughed.

“Alright, sent.”

“Oh, thank you so much, Mordred. I owe you one.”

“It’s okay,” he laughed. “We should be hanging up, in case she sees it right away.”

“Yeah, probably. Thanks again.”

“You’re welcome. You can keep my number in case of another emergency, I guess,” Mordred offered before he could stop himself. He winced and shook his head, embarrassed of himself.

“There probably won’t be need, but I’ll keep you in mind. Cheers.”

“Okay. Good night, Merlin.”

“Good night,” Merlin hung up.

Mordred left his phone on the desk and threw himself on his bed, wondering how the hell a strange conversation with a strange man he’d probably never from of again could leave him feeling so giddy.

 

~~~

It’d been three days since Mordred had left his flat for more than a few minutes at a time (and that was just to do grocery shopping), so he decided that he should reward himself with a Saturday full of relaxation.

He took a long shower, had some cereal for breakfast and around ten he was out on his way to the coffee shop. It was some ten minutes away from his flat and he walked slowly, wondering what to do with his day before deciding to buy a book that had just come out a few days ago and settle in the nearby park to read for a while – that was, if the weather didn’t do him a number.

When he entered he saw Gwen behind the counter, chatting with someone that was on Mordred’s side. That someone was leaning on the counter — giving anyone who cared to look a perfect view of his, dare Mordred say, _spectacular_ arse — and Mordred was reminded of Merlin. He had never seen him, nor spoken to him after that call a week ago, and Mordred wondered about him – what was he up to, did things work out between Gwen and Lance, who the hell was Merlin in the first place…

The man suddenly let out a laugh at something Gwen said and not a second later started choking on what seemed to be a mouthful of brownie. Mordred took the last couple of steps towards him hastily, panicking for a moment, wondering what to do, and ended up patting his back a little bit awkwardly. It wasn’t the best thing he could do, but it helped apparently, as the man calmed a bit turned around, his eyes — so fucking _blue_ —reddened and glistening with tears. He took a breath and started coughing again with a hand in front of his mouth. Gwen put a plastic cup filled with water in front of him, shaking her head.

“Cheers,” the man said groggily and then turned to Mordred, raising his cup as if toasting him before taking a careful sip. He then walked off, probably to wash off.

“That’s Merlin,” Gwen said as she turned to Mordred. _Well shit._ “He’s really not good at first impressions.” She smiled and shook her head again before wiping the surface between them from spit and crumbs.

“I think that might have been the second impression, actually.” _Third, if you count the impression his backside had made._ Gwen looked at him questioningly before her expression cleared in recognition.

“Mordred, isn’t it? I thought the name rang a bell. Didn’t think you’d be the guy the idiot rang in the middle of the night.”

“It wasn’t that late. And I didn’t mind.”

“Didn’t you,” she asked, but it wasn’t really a question. She looked down with a grin. “He still hasn’t figured out how he got your number in the first place.”

“Have you?” Mordred asked, raising his eyebrows.

“I might have an idea.”

“Care to share with me?” He asked as he leaned forward like Merlin had before. Merlin himself chose that moment to return.

“What did I miss?” He asked as he wiped his hands on the front of his jeans. Mordred took a moment to appreciate how absolutely unfair the way that his shirt was sticking to his body was.

“I was just getting Mordred’s order,” Gwen said with a smile. “Your usual?”

“Yes, thank you,” Mordred said as Merlin measured him with his gaze.

“There aren’t many Mordreds out there, hm?” He asked.

“Not that many Merlins, either.”

“So it is you!” Merlin’s smile lit up his whole face. He reached out to shake Mordred’s hand. “You told me you didn’t know Gwen.”

“I don’t, not really. I just come here a lot. Such a coincidence.”

“Small world,” Gwen said as she placed his cappuccino in front of him.

“Indeed,” Mordred said and paid for his drink. “Were you going to answer my question?”

“You got distracted,” Gwen replied and looked down again.

“What question?” Merlin asked.

Mordred glanced between them for a second. Clearly, she didn’t want to speak in front of Merlin. Mordred narrowed his eyes at her.

“I wanted to know if she ever met that Lance,” he said innocently. Gwen nearly stuttered, but composed herself and raised her chin, narrowing her eyes in return.

“How much did you manage to tell him?” She asked Merlin instead of answering Mordred.

“Not much!” Merlin raised his hands defensively. Gwen shot Mordred a look and he mouthed “Enough” before taking a sip from his drink. Gwen looked like she wanted to hiss at them.

“You’d do well to piss off, clients are coming in,” she said instead. They didn’t need to be asked twice.

“Are we gonna sit down or do you have somewhere to be?” Merlin asked as they headed away from the counter. Mordred was thrilled at the fact that Merlin just assumed they'd be spending time together.

“No, I’m just having a day off actually. Can we go outside, though? To the park?”

“Sure. Bye, Gwen!” Merlin called out. She waved at them and continued her work.

“So, she met Lance,” Mordred said once they were out.

“She did,” Merlin smirked. “You said it’s your day off – what do you do?”

“Oh, I’m a web designer,” Mordred replied. “I work from home, mostly. I just wanted to get out for a minute.”

“I see.”

“And what do you do?”

“…Arts,” Merlin said after a second’s hesitation. “Writing and drawing, mostly. It’s not always rewarding, so I have a job on the side, but it’s what I love the most.”

Most people had a job and made arts their hobby. Merlin had a job on the side. Mordred smiled. “It’s important that you keep doing it, then,” he said.

“Indeed,” Merlin agreed with a grin.

An hour later, after they’d settled on a bench, Mordred had heard all about Merlin’s job at the office, his prat of a boss and irreplaceable colleagues; he knew about the way Merlin had met Gwen after a fight with some of his classmates that he was very unwillingly dragged into – apparently, Gwen had a soft spot for idiots with brave hearts and had approached him as he was licking his wounds and they’d been together ever since. Merlin, on the other hand, had a soft spot for everything and anything and tended to eternalize people who inspired him by including them in his stories. He was halfway through telling the story of Guinevere, inspired by both a character of legends and Gwen, when he stopped abruptly.

“I’ve been talking an awful lot,” he announced. “And you’ve barely said a word. Aren’t I annoying you?”

“Not in the slightest. I’ve been wondering about you, actually.”

“Oh, have you?” Merlin asked. There was something in his tone that made Mordred avert his gaze.

“Yeah.” When he looked at Merlin again, a grin was playing on his lips, matching the mirth in his eyes. Mordred felt his cheeks warm at the attention and gulped nervously, clearing his throat a second later. “How did you get my number, anyway?”

“I have no idea,” frustration made its way to Merlin’s features. “But I’m gonna figure it out,” he said determinedly. “You said you don’t know Gwen…”

“No. You’d think I’d do, after working with Morgana for—”

“Morgana?” Merlin cut him off and raised his eyebrows. “Do you know her?”

“Yes, I made the shop’s website.”

“They have a website?”

“Yeah.”

“But what for? It’s a bloody coffee shop, not a business!”

“I don’t know,” Mordred shrugged, trying to recall the contents. “They… make cakes? For birthdays and stuff?”

Merlin stared at him for a moment before humming wistfully and looking away, his eyebrows drawn together.

“What are you trying to figure out?” Mordred asked.

“When did you meet Morgana?” Merlin asked instead of answering.

“I’ve always loved the shop, but last month I overheard her and Gwen about them needing a site… I approached Morgana and we did the job pretty quickly. We finished about two weeks ago.”

Merlin hummed again. “And she has your number?”

“Yes, of course,” Mordred said. He narrowed his eyes, “Do you think she replaced Gwen’s number with mine?”

“Yes, maybe.”

“But why would she?”

Merlin cast him a sidelong glance.

“She…” He cleared his throat. “She’s been trying to set me up ever since I broke up with my last boyfriend. Lance was the only decent-looking blokes of them all, but I nearly bailed out of the date with him as well. Now I’m glad I didn’t, but…”

An awkward silence settled between them. Mordred didn’t look at Merlin as he spoke.

“So I’m one of her matchmaking attempts, then.”

“Probably. Sorry about that.” Mordred looked at Merlin and something tightened in his chest at the apologetic look on Merlin’s face.

“It’s not your fault,” Mordred murmured. He looked down at his empty coffee cup, squashing it with his hand repeatedly. “None of this is your fault. I should probably—”

“Mordred,” Merlin placed a hand on Mordred’s arm, stopping him from rising up and running away. “I’m glad I met you,” he said earnestly. Mordred nodded and looked away again, clenching his jaw nervously. “Tell me about yourself,” Merlin prompted. “Do you live alone?” Mordred nodded. “What about your family? Do they live around here?”

“Don’t have a family,” Mordred said shortly. He couldn’t really name the feeling that’d gotten over him, but while minutes ago talking to Merlin seemed like the easiest thing ever, now he’d rather do anything else but be around him. He didn’t look at Merlin to see the confusion or pity in his eyes. He rose to his feet. “I should go.”

“Oh…kay.”

“See you around, Merlin.”

He’d already turned around and started walking when Merlin’s confused – and maybe slightly hurt – “See you” reached his ears.

 

 

~

_**I’m sorry about today.** _

Mordred stared at the text for about ten seconds before hitting the send button. With a sigh he reached for the book he’d bought after all and, just as he’d made himself comfortable on his bed, his phone rang. Merlin.

“Hello?”

“You kept my number!” Merlin said by way of greeting. Mordred had to chuckle at how cheerful he sounded.

“Yeah, of course I did.”

“Of course you did,” Merlin echoed him.

“Are you going to just tease me anytime we speak?” Mordred laughed.

“Tease you?”

“Yes, tease me. You just repeat everything I say with that tone of yours, and you smirk and your eyes—”

“What about my eyes?”

“Well,” Mordred hesitated. “They’re, you know. Nice.”

“Jeez, let’s hope I don’t let your flattery get to my head.”

“Ah, they’re bloody gorgeous, alright?” Mordred covered his own eyes with a hand and ran his fingers through his fringe. “I don’t know why I said that. I’m not that straightforward, usually.”

“I’m glad,” Merlin said. “About the not-being-straight part,” he added. Mordred didn’t reply. “Sorry, I don’t know why I said that, either.”

“I’d suppose that wasn’t one of your smoothest moments.”

“Only the third time we’re speaking and you know me so well.”

“You’re an open book,” Mordred said.

“I know!” Merlin exclaimed. “That’s what I’ve been saying. Nobody believes me.”

“Why don’t they?”

“I don’t know. They just say I’m being shifty.”

“Maybe you have something to hide?” Mordred suggested.

“Don’t we all?”

“We do,” Mordred said and paused for a bit. “I’m really sorry about today. It was rude of me to—”

“No, Mordred,” Merlin cut him off. “I shouldn’t have asked, it was none of my business.”

“You didn’t know,” Mordred insisted. “It’s just… not a first date conversation, you know?”

Merlin hummed. “So… we had our first date?” He asked. Mordred could hear he was smiling again.

“I guess,” he said, feeling a bit awkward. “Although it didn’t go quite as well as I hoped it would. Give me a second chance?”

“You didn’t do anything, Mordred, that wouldn’t be a second chance. Just another date. Wanna see a movie?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Alright, then.”

They made arrangements to meet again three days later for one of the new horror flicks that had just hit the cinemas.

Mordred knew he’d go to the coffee shop every day until then nonetheless, hoping to catch a glimpse of Merlin.

And he wasn’t disappointed.

 

 

~~~

“You’re early.”

Mordred glanced up from his phone. He smiled at Merlin before looking at his watch. “So are you.”

“I couldn’t wait to see you,” Merlin replied with a grin.

“You saw me yesterday,” Mordred said and busied himself with pocketing his phone as he felt himself blush again. Yes, he’d seen Merlin the day before, as well as the day before that, and that had only fueled his desire to spend more time with the man.

Merlin had that talent of making Mordred feel a strange mix of relaxed and nervous, bold and shy, interesting and completely dull at the same time. Anytime their gazes met Merlin’s grin crinkled his eyes and he spoke like they’d known each other for years, somehow managing to slip into the conversation everything Mordred needed to know about him. His touches on Mordred’s arm — and once, to Mordred’s mortification, on his cheek as Merlin wiped some chocolate from it — were easy and familiar but not intrusive. He spoke about his work and asked Mordred about his own, seeming genuinely interested, although Mordred still stuttered through his sentences sometimes as he compared his boring world to Merlin’s colourful one.

It seemed like Merlin really liked Mordred. Mordred most definitely liked him back.

And he was terrified of screwing things up.

“I did. And it made my day,” Merlin said, his tone as playful as ever. Mordred smiled at him.

“Mine, as well,” Mordred said as he got up from the bench. They’d chosen to meet in the same park they usually went to after getting coffee as it was close to the cinema, as well. “Are you ready for the zombies?” He asked as they started walking.

“Not zombies,” Merlin corrected. “Just your regular hideous monsters.”

“Oh, is that so. I know nothing about that movie, now that I think about it.”

“It’s a part of a series, sort of,” Merlin said bemusedly. “But it stands on its own. Now that you mentioned the monsters, there are theories that there are not monsters at all. The characters’ reality is sort of warped and some people say that it’s possible for them to see other people as monsters.”

“Theories?” Mordred asked.

“Yeah, from the fans on this… site.” For the first time, Merlin’s smile looked a little sheepish. Mordred wondered if he should ask about Tumblr but decided to leave it for another time. “Sorry, I’m a bit of a fanboy myself. I’ve been waiting for this movie for quite a long time.”

“It’s okay,” Mordred smiled at him. He didn’t say that he adored the way Merlin’s eyes lit up every time he talked about something he loved, but he’d taken note of it and it made him smile anytime he thought about it.

Merlin’s chatter didn’t waver on their way to the cinema.

When they got in line, Mordred felt nervousness flutter in his belly.

“Don’t worry,” Merlin leaned towards him to speak quietly in his ear. “I’ll hold your hand through the scary parts.” He stepped away again and grinned; Mordred found himself mimicking him, although he felt even giddier as he barely suppressed the urge to chase Merlin and capture his lips in a kiss. He looked away and moved along with the line.

The movie wasn’t all that scary. It had its creepy moments, but nothing too frightening. Nonetheless, Mordred kept his hand on the armrest in case Merlin decided to keep his word. He was left mildly disappointed as the only attention he got was the light brush of Merlin’s hand against his knuckles when Merlin reached for his drink.

In the end, he got little to none of the plot of the film, his mind too busy appreciating Merlin’s presence next to him. As they got out, Mordred asked whether Merlin was happy with the movie or not — he was a bit of both — and tried not to get distracted again as Merlin opened the door for him, placing his hand on Mordred’s waist as he led him through it and talked all the while.

“You live around here, don’t you?” Merlin asked as they reached the park, walking there by unspoken agreement.

“Yeah, I do. Same distance as the cinema, opposite direction.”

“Would you like me to walk you there?”

“Yeah, sure. But you don’t have to—”

“I want to,” Merlin said softly. “There’s a stop nearby, I’ll just catch my bus after that.”

“Alright.”

They walked in companionable silence most of the way. Mordred, feeling awkward for leaving Merlin to shoulder the conversation earlier, decided to break it.

“I really had fun today,” he offered simply.

“Yeah?” Merlin chuckled. “The monsters didn’t put you off?”

“Nah, they’re not a problem.” Mordred bit his lip to stop himself from blurting out a cheesy line, or worse – a cheesy line from a TV show. He didn’t have to wrestle with himself for long, as Merlin stopped and gripped Mordred’s hand, halting him as well.

“My stop is over there,” he nodded with his head as Mordred faced him.

“Oh, right. Well, I’m just around the corner, so—”

Merlin kissed him. His lips were warm and incredibly soft against Mordred’s; Mordred had barely caught himself and started to respond when Merlin broke the kiss, not moving away and leaning to touch his forehead to Mordred’s.

“I just wanted to make sure we’re… on the same page here,” Merlin said softly, his thumb drawing a circle on the back of Mordred’s hand.

“We are,” Mordred smiled up at him. He placed a small kiss on Merlin’s lips and let Merlin wrap his hands around his waist. “I just need to take things slower. I hope that’s alright with you.”

“It’s perfectly fine,” Merlin assured him. He embraced Mordred a little tighter and Mordred leaned into it, letting his head rest on Merlin’s shoulder.

“You have to go?” He asked after a moment. Merlin sighed.

“Yeah, I’ve got to run some errands,” he said as he stepped away. With a smile he tucked a stray lock from Mordred’s hair in its place. “I’ll see you soon, though.”

“You definitely will,” Mordred replied and stole another quick kiss before he could stop himself. Merlin’s grin lit up his face.

“I can’t wait already,” he said before stepping away from Mordred. They walked together for a few more steps before separating, each wearing a fond smile on his face.

 

~~~

They were on the same page.

Mordred had a bit of a giddy air about him the next couple of weeks. He went to the coffee shop nearly every day, met up with Merlin and they either stayed there, having coffee and sweets and chatting, or went for a walk. At one point Mordred suggested going to see another film, but after five minutes of staring at movie titles and not having anything catch their eye, they decided to have a not-quite-picnic in the park.

None of these encounters had felt like proper dates so Mordred couldn’t actually say they were _dating._ But then Merlin would entwine their fingers together or kiss him or press his lips to Mordred’s forehead when Mordred leaned his head on Merlin’s shoulder. His little gestures and smiles made Mordred melt a little every time, but he was too uncertain to talk to Merlin about where they stood. He was content in the knowledge that they were on the same page, indeed.

One day, as they were sitting at their usual table in one corner of the coffee shop, Merlin said, “Someone asked me out today.”

“Yeah?” Mordred looked up from Merlin’s laptop which he’d been playing with for the past half an hour, tweaking it and upgrading everything Merlin couldn’t be bothered with. He tried not to sound nervous or let the tiny flash of jealousy show on his face. He was still blushing from earlier when he’d put his glasses on and Merlin had looked at him as if he could eat him right up. He didn’t really need to become any more flustered. “Who was it?”

“This guy from work,” Merlin smirked as if he’d seen right through Mordred, so he looked back to the computer in front of him and hummed noncommittally. “Wanted to get coffee sometime.”

“What did you say?” Mordred asked with a faint chuckle.

“I told him I have a boyfriend,” Merlin shrugged and uncrossed his legs, leaning forward to take his cup in his hand. He pointedly ignored Mordred’s reaction until he raised his cup to him and added, “And that I enjoy getting coffee with him too much to replace him for anyone.”

Mordred barely waited until the cup was back on the table before he grabbed a laughing Merlin by the collar and kissed him soundly.

 

~~~

Mordred had to restrain himself from going to the shop for the next few days. He’d given himself enough time to rest and decided to catch up on work, rewarding himself with the occasional text and call to Merlin. When he started finding himself all cramped up and squinting against the sunlight, he decided it was time to agree to a cup of coffee.

“How about a lunch at mine, instead?” Merlin asked and Mordred’s hand froze on the way to his keys. “Morgana’s coming, why don’t you join us?”

“Morgana?”

“Yeah, we just wanted to chat and I don’t really feel like going out, so I invited her over.”

“I’m not sure…”

“Are you scared of her?”

“Am I supposed to be?” Mordred frowned. Merlin hummed.

“Most people are.”

“Well, I’m not. I just don’t wanna interrupt.”

“You won’t be interrupting. It’s not a business meeting, just mates catching up. Are you in?”

“Okay, sure. Text me the address.”

“Done. See you in a bit.”

“See you.”

Mordred hung up and finally took his keys in his hand, squeezing them for a second as he just stood there before his door. His whole body was too busy appreciating the fact that he’d soon be in Merlin’s home to make a move to bloody get out and get there already. He shook his head after a moment and opened the door, locking it hastily and skipping down the stairs.

He didn’t know if Merlin had confronted Morgana about her saving his number in Merlin’s phone. He didn’t know if she did it for a joke, or if she truly believed she was helping them. He wasn’t even completely sure she’d done it, even though the signs pointed to her. Whatever the case was, she seemed to be in Merlin’s good graces, and that gave him hope for good things to come.

Then again, Morgana was always in Merlin’s good graces. Merlin had told him about her, too – he’d met her in uni and, as with most of his friends from school, he’d made sure to keep in touch with her. A couple of years ago she’d offered him a job in her brother’s firm and Merlin had reluctantly taken it, because he didn’t get along with Arthur at all, but now there was fondness hidden behind every insult he used to describe his boss and—

Mordred knew way too much about Merlin’s life for someone who’d met him just about a month ago. He tried not to think too hard about what he’d have to do in order to let Merlin get to know him better because when it came to Merlin, planning was never an option. It was best to just go with the flow.

 

~

“That’s Kara,” Mordred said as he was finishing off his sandwich. Morgana had stolen his phone and was currently going through his pictures. “I had the biggest crush on her when we were kids. We dated for a bit, but it was doomed as soon as I caught a glimpse of her brother.”

“Oh, she’s your Freya!” Morgana said, looking at Merlin who was doing the dishes at this point.

“Oh,” Merlin said before nodding thoughtfully. “Yeah, kinda?”

“My what?”

“Your Freya.”

“Freya’s the only girl I’ve ever dated,” Merlin started. “I always knew I was bi, but I have a preference, you know? Never quite felt as attracted to girls, but I fell for her instantly. We got together in college for about two months.”

“Did you fancy her brother, too?” Mordred laughed.

“Nope, he fell for mine,” Morgana replied.

“Your brother?” Mordred choked. “Hiss boss?”

“Oh, don’t worry, Puppy,” Morgana said, patting his head and laughing as he pouted at her. He’d forgotten the nickname she’d given him. He also didn’t like the amused glance it made Merlin send him. “He’s all yours, now.”

Merlin threw Mordred a look, raising his eyebrows as if to ask, ‘Jealous?’ Mordred stuck his tongue out until Merlin looked away and chuckled as he reached for his coffee. “So, what happened to that Freya girl?” He asked.

“She died,” Merlin said easily as he rinsed a bowl. Mordred’s cup froze halfway to his mouth. “I’m joking,” Merlin said, turning towards Mordred again. Mordred glared at him and heaved a frustrated sigh at Morgana’s laughter. “We broke up. Remained friends, then she went to study abroad. The end.”

“I’m sorry?” Mordred offered. Merlin smiled.

“You shouldn’t be. As I said, we were friends. Still are, kind of, although we don’t talk so often.”

“I’m—”

“Is that Will?!” Morgana shrieked suddenly. When Mordred looked at her she was holding his phone way too close to her face and sliding through pictures quickly. “How do you even know... oh... _oh. Nice._ ”

Mordred and Merlin glanced at each other. Then at Morgana. For half a second their gazes met again before they both flew over the kitchen table and towards Morgana, reaching for Mordred’s phone. She just laughed and jumped off her chair and out the door, slamming it shut and leaving them to wrestle it out on their own.

When Mordred finally stumbled towards the door, he didn’t bother chasing after Morgana; he couldn’t make her unsee the pictures. The damage was done. He leaned on the doorframe instead, blocking Merlin’s way out.

“Not fair,” Merlin panted as he got up and stepped closer, “that she gets to see the pictures and I don’t.”

“Sorry,” Mordred said cheerfully, not meaning it at all. Merlin groaned and buried his fingers in Mordred’s hair, pinning him to the door and pressing their lips together. Mordred let out something akin to a whimper as he fisted Merlin’s shirt and pulled him closer, inched forward, tried not to just rub off aganst Merlin then and there. Merlin pulled away before anything of the like happened.

“How do you even know Will?” Merlin asked. “He give you a tattoo?”

“How do _you_ know him?” Mordred countered. Merlin scoffed.

“I’ve known him since we were babies,” he answered quickly. “Do you have a tattoo?” He asked again, more insistently. Mordred raised his eyebrows.

“Maybe I do,” he replied, licking his lips. Merlin’s eyes followed the movement. “What of it?”

“Maybe I wanna see,” Merlin said lowly, lips teasing Mordred’s jaw as he leaned in closer.

“Maybe it’s a kink of yours I should know about?”

“Maybe not,” Merlin smirked and pecked Mordred’s lips. “It’s not on the list,” he said as he pulled back an inch, looking straight into Mordred’s eyes. Mordred barely held back a whimper at the thought of a list _existing_ and _being explored_ and _having Merlin fall apart beneath him._ He was about to initiate the snogging of his life when the door opened behind him.

“Alright, I’m done.” Morgana announced cheerfully as Merlin and Mordred scrambled away from each other. “Sorry for interrupting. I could have just sneaked out and left you to it, but my purse is in here.”

“You’re leaving?” Merlin asked.

“Yeah, I got a call,” she replied simply, and was it Mordred or did she actually look a little flustered?

Before he could think about it, panic bursted in his belly.

“I should go, as well,” he blurted out.

“Are you sure?” Merlin turned to him, silently pleading with his eyes. “You can stay, we’ll put on a movie or something.”

Morgana waggled her eyebrows at Mordred. He resisted the urge to hiss at her and smiled at Merlin.

“Sure. I can stay a bit longer.”

“Great,” Merlin beamed at him. Morgana’s discreet little cough helped him take his eyes off Mordred for a second. “Right, sorry. I’ll walk you out.”

“Thank you,” Morgana said gracefully. She ruffled Mordred’s hair on her way out. “See you, Puppy.”

“Bye, Morgana,” he sighed.

He stayed in the kitchen as Merlin and Morgana said their goodbyes and the door shut behind her.

“So,” Merlin said as he returned. “DVDs are over there, wanna choose something while I make the popcorn?”

“Okay,” Mordred replied casually. He kissed Merlin on his way out, pulling him close and pressing their bodies together not so casually.

“Fuck,” Merlin whispered against his lips and Mordred found himself imagining all the ways he could make him utter that little word. _Fuck, indeed._

 

~

They lasted until about halfway through the movie before they were all over each other again. They’d somehow managed to tangle their legs together, making it hard to distinguish who was trying to climb on top of whom and they were kissing and pulling at each other and—

Mordred pulled away, taking a stuttering breath.

“We need to…”

“Take it slow,” Merlin finished for him, leaning in and nuzzling into Mordred’s neck. “I know. Sorry,” he said before pecking the sensitive skin beneath his ear and retreating, a small smile settling on his lips.

“No, it was…” Mordred gulped. “Fine. I just…” he leaned towards Merlin, nipping on his lower lip and barely stifling his groan as he kissed Merlin again. “It’s been a while. Since I’ve been with someone.”

“Why do I find that hard to believe?” Merlin asked, his fingers playing with a lock of Mordred’s hair. His eyes glistened with open adoration that made Mordred’s chest tighten. He moved in for another kiss, hoping that his lips against Merlin’s would express his own fondness more than words could.

“Back to the movie?” He whispered after a moment, barely an inch away from Merlin’s lips, reluctant to pull away further.

“Yeah,” Merlin replied in kind. He shifted away from him when Mordred couldn’t, but still flung his arm across Mordred’s shoulders and pulled him closer to himself as they turned back to the TV.

 

~

Mordred was reading that same evening, a couple of hours after he’d left Merlin’s place when he got a call from him.

“Hello?”

“M-mordred. Hi,” Merlin said, sounding a bit breathless, just like the first time he’d called Mordred. He was definitely not going up the stairs this time, though.

“Hi, Merlin,” Mordred said carefully. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I— _fuck_ ,” Merlin said in a tone that went straight to Mordred’s groin. Mordred let his head fall back to the headboard as he closed his eyes.

“Please tell me you’re not wanking,” he said.

“I really can’t tell you that,” Merlin laughed a little. “Would it be that bad if I was?” Mordred heard a rustle of sheets and found himself picturing Merlin shifting on his bed as he fucked up into his fist and a small moan escaped him. “Didn’t think so,” Merlin said smugly.

“You’re insane,” Mordred said, resigning. He put his book aside and pushed his blanket off, making himself more comfortable. “How did you even decide to call me?”

“I was thinking about you, anyways, might as well have your voice in my ear. I love your voice, you know.”

“Mm, do you, now,” Mordred asked as he cupped himself through his pants, deliberately lowering his tone.

“Fuck, yeah,” Merlin panted. “I also thought about how we sort of met on the phone, so I decided our first time should be on the phone, as well.”

“Terribly romantic,” Mordred remarked.

“I know, right?”

Mordred took a deep breath before speaking again. “What were you thinking about before you called me?”

“I couldn’t decide, really,” Merlin sighed softly. “I don’t know what would be better, fucking you or fucking myself onto your cock. What do you think?”

Mordred pushed his briefs down and gripped his cock as he allowed the images to fill his mind. He allowed himself a small moan before replying. “Fuck, it’s a hard one.”

“We should try both.”

“We really should,” Mordred said. “But I think I’d like to fuck that mouth of yours, first.”

“Yeah, fuck, do that,” Merlin moaned.

“Put your fingers in your mouth,” Mordred said as he hastily shifted towards his bedside table. He found the bottle he was looking for and swore under his breath. Merlin made a questioning sound around his fingers that made Mordred’s cock throb. “Almost out of lube.”

“It’s alright,” Merlin said teasingly as Mordred poured whatever was left of the lubricant on his hand. “I’ll make your cock nice and slippery.”

“Fuck, yes, you will,” Mordred said as he wrapped his hand around himself. “Are you licking your fingers, wetting them nicely?” Merlin moaned around them again and Mordred swore. “Take them out and run them over your rim.”

“Way ahead of you, sweetheart,” Merlin panted. “I’ve had two fingers inside of me ever since we started.”

“Fuck. Make them three, then. You wanna be ready for my cock, don’t you?”

“A- _ha_ ,” Merlin gasped sweetly and Mordred could picture Merlin as he fingered himself, spread out on the bed, flushed and sweating.

“Fuck, look at you, desperate for me,” he said in a rush, tugging on his cock urgently. “I wanna fuck you so bad.”

“I want you to fuck me,” Merlin replied and it almost sounded like a whine, but he let out a loud moan right after that and Mordred knew he’d touched the right spot.

“That’s right, love, come on, fuck yourself on those fingers,” Mordred moaned. “Feel my cock filling you…”

“Mordred,” Merlin moaned. Mordred heard him shift again and Merlin’s moans grew even louder in volume. “Mordred, please, fuck—fuck me, I—”

“Merlin,” Mordred’s voice broke over a moan and he came in a rush. He stifled his groan and listened to Merlin’s high-pitched moan, followed by a few quieter ones that sounded almost like whimpers and made Mordred shudder as he imagined Merlin riding it out.

They stayed silent for a minute, catching their breath.

“But you’re so cute!” Merlin exclaimed suddenly, startling Mordred.

“Sorry?”

“You’re so adorable and you make be wanna squish you and snuggle with you and kiss your cheeks,” Merlin said, “And now suddenly all I can imagine you doing is bending me over and fucking me senseless. How do you do that?”

“I…” Mordred thought about it and now that he was down from his high, some things he’d said seemed rather embarrassing to him. He felt his cheeks warm up. “Uhm…”

“Fuck, I bet you’re blushing right now!”

“Am not!”

“Liar. I feel the heat emanating from the phone.”

“Shut up,” Mordred groaned.

Merlin laughed. “You’re gorgeous,” he said softly.

“You’re quite gorgeous, yourself,” Mordred replied.

“Thank you.” There was a pause. “Ugh, I really want you in my bed right now. I love cuddling after a good shag.”

“I’ll have that in mind,” Mordred promised. “I need to clean myself up a bit,” he said as he looked down at himself.

“Yeah, me too,” Merlin sighed. “See you tomoorow?”

“Yeah.”

“Good night, Mordred.”

“Good night.”

 

~

Their meeting the next day was… interesting.

Mordred was having tea with Gwen at their table late in the afternoon when Merlin walked in. He spotted them right away and approached them, beaming at Mordred all the while. When he stopped next to the table, looking down at him, Mordred barely contained a giggle.

“Hi,” he let out, pulling a chair next to his for Merlin to sit down.

“Hello,” Merlin very nearly purred at him as he sat and leaned forward to kiss him. Their kiss got cut short by a quiet click from Gwen’s direction. When they pulled apart and looked at her, she just smiled innocently, and showed them her phone.

“Oi, none of that,” Merlin scolded but then reached for the phone. “Let me see.”

“You’re too cute, sorry,” Gwen said as Merlin turned the phone for Mordred to see. He tilted his head to the side as he looked at the picture. He hadn’t even realized he’d reached up to cup Merlin’s cheek, but there he was, hiding half of Merlin’s face as he sucked on his lips.

Merlin looked at him with raised eyebrows.

“That’s the first picture of us,” Mordred said.

“Yeah, it is,” Merlin said thoughtfully. “Talking about pictures...” Mordred growled, already knowing where this was going. “What? Tell me, at least!” Merlin demanded as he gave Gwen her phone back, leaving the picture intact.

“Tell you what?” Gwen asked. “If it’s about the tattoo, Morgana told me already,” she smirked.

“Oh, so they get to know and I don’t?” Merlin sputtered, scandalised. Mordred laughed and leaned closer.

“You might get to see it soon,” he said loud enough only for Merlin to hear. Judging by the look Merlin gave him, he clearly got what Mordred meant by that.

“I’m gonna go, I think Morgana needs me,” Gwen left them with an apologetic smile. Merlin watched her go, an amused smirk playing on his lips.

“Did you hear Morgana calling for her?”

“Nope,” Mordred laughed. “Did you ask about Morgana and my number in your phone?”

“Yeah, it was her. I’m pretty sure she also made Leon ask me out to see my reaction.”

“Was that the guy from work?”

“Yeah. But I think the both of them actually hooked up.”

Mordred hummed. “Was he the one to call her yesterday?”

“Probably,” Merlin laughed. “No wonder she was in a hurry.”

“Yeah,” Mordred laughed as well. “Uhm... do you wanna go?”

“Go where?” Merlin asked distractedly, still gazing back at the counter.

“Back to mine,” Mordred mumbled. He would’ve laughed at the way Merlin’s head snapped in his direction if he weren’t so bloody nervous.

“Uhm. Sure?”

Mordred huffed. “Well, don’t get _too_ excited.”

“What do you want me to say?” Merlin said snappishly. “D’you want me to scream about how much I want your cock in me? I thought I made that pretty fucking clear last night.”

Mordred stared at Merlin’s flushed face, his own angry breaths matching Merlin’s. Why was he angry again?

“That’s the most ridiculous first argument any couple could ever have.”

“Yeah,” Merlin laughed and made a face. _“Ugh, I wanna fuck you.”_

 _“Ugh, no, I wanna fuck you more,”_ Mordred played along and they started giggling just as Morgana approached them.

“You’re the worst,” she said, grinning at them.

“You’re lucky we won’t be long, then,” Mordred smiled up at her sweetly before finishing his tea.

“Are you leaving?”

“Yeah, actually, we have... plans.” Merlin said. Mordred chuckled and busied himself with checking his pockets for all his possessions.

“I was going to ask you to have dinner,” Morgana tilted her head to the side. She then waved a hand dismissively before they could feel too guilty about blowing her off. “But oh, just go. Surely what you boys have in mind is more exciting than spending some time with poor old aunt Morgana.”

“The boys will make it up to aunt Morgana by taking her out someplace nice sometime soon?” Merlin suggested as he stood up. He gave her one of his best smiles and kissed her cheek. Mordred heard Morgana mumble something, to which Merlin replied with a snort and a, “Probably not.” Morgana laughed at that and patted his arm.

Mordred decided it was best not to ask.

 

~

What the boys had in mind was definitely more exciting.

After the minute-long tour Mordred gave Merlin, he promptly pushed him to the part of the flat they were both most interested in getting to. They laughed as the door crashed open and Mordred pushed Merlin on his bed, slumping on top of him and kissing down his neck.

“The...” Merlin panted. “The door.”

“What about it?” Mordred mumbled.

“Can you close it?”

Mordred looked up. “Why?”

“I feel weird about open doors.”

“That’s not a proper way to view future opportunities.”

“Not like that, you dork,” Merlin ran his fingers through Mordred’s hair. “It’s just that... catching your roommate’s dog watching you through the crease as you wank kind of changes the way you look at things.”

“Oh. Ew,” Mordred laughed and buried his face in Merlin’s neck again. “Fine, I’ll close it. I have to get something from the bathroom, anyway...”

When he returned with what he needed, he found Merlin splayed on his bed in his boxers only, palming himself and grinning widely.

“I see you’ve already started.”

“And I see you’ve restocked,” Merlin was delighted to remark.

“I was hopeful,” Mordred said as he dropped them on the bed and got rid of his shirt and jeans. Merlin’s eyes lingered on his chest, and more specifically, the ink beneath his right collarbone. Mordred looked down at his tattoo, then back at Merlin, and wordlessly straddled his thighs.

Merlin rose up immediately, meeting him halfway for a kiss that left them breathless. When they pulled apart, Merlin gave Mordred a wary look before he put a hand to Mordred’s chest, his fingers tracing the lines of the three black spirals.

“What does it mean?” He whispered.

“You don’t want to know,” Mordred chuckled. When Merlin raised his eyebrows at him, he added: “I mean, not now. Please?”

Merlin nodded wordlessly and pressed a small kiss to the point in which the spirals met. He then grinned wickedly and wrapped his lips around Mordred’s nipple, making him bury his fingers in Merlin’s hair and pull him closer.

Merlin pushed him to lie down and positioned himself on top of Mordred as he teased and licked over his nipple again, kissing over to the left and sucking on it as well. Mordred squirmed beneath him and pushed Merlin down, not so subtly redirecting him to the part of him that needed him the most. Merlin said nothing, just smirked up at him as he pushed Mordred’s briefs down and licked a stripe up his cock.

“Merlin, come on,” Mordred whined and threw his head back in frustration. He pushed his underwear further down and Merlin moved away so he could throw the offending piece of clothing to the side. When he was bare, he spread his legs for Merlin to come back to and laughed at Merlin’s funny little moan when he bent to swallow his cock right away.

As a finger brushed over his hole, Mordred’s hips bucked up and he let out a choked moan.

“Do you want to stop?” Merlin asked, his breath ghosting over Mordred’s cock. Mordred swallowed down a moan and shook his head carefully.

“No, I just… Uhm...”

“You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”

“...Only by myself,” Mordred admitted and reached for Merlin. A whine escaped him when he actually pulled away a bit.

“Mordred...”

“I want to,” he grunted. “Fuck, Merlin, I want _you._ I want you to fuck me,” he said firmly, looking down at Merlin’s wide eyes. He reached down and stroked his cock slowly, revelling in the rumbling moan Merlin let out as he sucked him in again. “Yeah,” he moaned weakly, pushing up and stroking the corner of Merlin’s lips with his thumb. With his other hand he searched the sheets for the lube and when he passed it to Merlin, he could swear Merlin’s eyes got even darker as he swallowed further, almost choking himself on Mordred’s cock. “You need to stop,” he warned. Merlin let him go with a loud pop and grinned at him as he opened the little bottle and slicked his fingers up.

“Relax, now,” he said softly as his fingers made his way to Mordred again. Mordred huffed a laugh.

“Done this before, remember?” He reached for a pillow and put it under his waist, getting more comfortable. “Come on, give it to me.”

Merlin whined as he pressed his fingers to Mordred’s rim and pushed a tip in. “When you say that you’ve done it before,” he said as he slid a finger inside, “you don’t mean you did it earlier today by any chance, do you?” Mordred bit his lip as he nodded. “Fuck. You’re unbelievable.”

“Shut up.”

“Oi, don’t blush now!” Merlin laughed as he pressed another finger inside. “Fuck. So cute.”

“Ah, yes, cute. Exactly the thing a man wants to be called in bed,” Mordred said, feeling his face heat up even more.

“But you are! You’re adorable,” Merlin leaned down to kiss his cheek. “And you’re taking my fingers like the good boy you are.” Mordred moaned, surprised at the way his cock twitched at Merlin’s words.

“You like that?” Merlin whispered, nibbling at his jaw.

“Yeah,” Mordred said. “Don’t stop.”

“Didn’t plan to,” Merlin smirked and added another finger. “Gotta get you ready for me, don’t I?” Mordred gasped as Merlin pressed against his prostate. “D’you fuck yourself on your fingers earlier, thinking of me?”

“Yeah,” Mordred whined and fisted the sheets, fighting against the waves of toe-curling pleasure that hit him with every stroke of Merlin’s fingers.

“Did you imagine it was me fucking you?”

“Yeah—”

“Did you imagine it was me that held you down and pushed into you until you came all over yourself?”

“ _Merlin,_ ” Mordred tried to warn, bucking wildly and reaching for his cock, only to stop halfway and have his nails scratch over his abdomen. Merlin seemed to get it and with a whispered _fuck_ grabbed Mordred’s cock and squeezed the base tightly, stroking a slick hand over his hip to soothe Mordred as the almost-orgasm rippled through him.

Not realizing he’d closed them, Mordred opened his eyes to see a shaky Merlin stroke his own cock with a slightly dazed expression.

“Don’t you dare, now,” Mordred grunted as he passed him a condom.

“You’re so fucking hot,” Merlin whined by way of excuse. He tore the wrapper open and slid the condom on, slicking himself up hastily. Mordred exhaled shakily, clinging to Merlin as he pushed in.

Merlin went as slow as he could, rocking his hips gently with his face buried in Mordred’s neck. Mordred nibbled on his ear when he felt more relaxed, like he could take more, and felt rather than heard Merlin’s shaky chuckle before he braced himself and picked up the pace. He was lost, then; lost to the way Merlin was gripping his thighs, lost to the way Merlin’s lips round to let out his broken moans, lost to the way Merlin pushed onto the right spot over and over and _Merlin, Merlin, Merlin..._

He made a mess of them both as he came, nearly screaming as Merlin kept fucking him, shifting his hips and seeking his own pleasure; pushing and pushing and _pushing_ and stilling inside him, whispering God knows what as he bent his forehead and touched it to Mordred’s. He kissed him lightly before he pulled out and slumped to the side, pulling the condom off and dropping it on the floor.

“Shit! Sorry,” he squawked a second later, glancing over the side of the bed. “That was gross, I’m so sorry,” he rambled as he made to get up.

“No, it’s okay,” Mordred said as he wrapped his fingers around Merlin’s wrist. When Merlin looked at him uncertainly, Mordred smiled and pulled him back to lie down. “Don’t worry about it,” he mumbled sleepily as Merlin wrapped himself around him.

“Can I ask about it now?” Merlin said after a minute. When Mordred looked at him, Merlin touched the lines of his tattoo again. Mordred sighed.

“It’s going to kill the mood.”

“No, it’s not.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Please?” Merlin tried his sweetest smile on him. Mordred sighed again, resigned.

“I warned you,” he said quietly before taking a deep breath and looking away from Merlin’s curious expression. “I’ve... I’ve faced death three times.” Silence rang for a second.

“Mordred...”

“No, shush. You wanted me to tell you, and if I don’t do it now, I don’t know if I ever will,” he said sternly. “I just... I know that I’ve been shit at this, getting close to you - I know I’m not the easiest person to be with, yeah?”

“You haven’t been shit at it,” Merlin said, his fingers skating over Mordred’s chest lightly. “You’ve been... mysterious. And I like that, you know I do,” he smiled, but then it dropped. “I thought you were reserved, but I didn’t know if there was a reason, and I wouldn’t ask...”

Mordred took another deep breath before continuing. “I... I lost my parents. When I was little. Our house burned down - I don’t remember a lot of it. I don’t remember a lot of them, either,” he let out in a rush. He stroked Merlin’s arm when he felt Merlin hug him tighter. “All I know is that I came alive out of it and they didn’t. My uncle took care of me after that - raised me like his own. And then we got into a car crash... he didn’t make it. And I didn’t even have a scratch,” he laughed shortly and looked down at Merlin’s earnest expression. Merlin pecked his jaw quickly and snuggled up closer to him. Mordred leaned his cheek on his soft hair. “It’s just... always felt like I’ve been both cursed and blessed – I go through the worst and I keep getting out of it, so... yeah. That’s what it symbolises. Kind of. It all sounds better and a bit more poetic in my head,” he mumbled, embarrassed.

“You know I’ve always preferred prose,” Merlin said with a smile. “I’m sorry about everything you went through.”

“It’s okay.”

“No, it isn’t,” Merlin said, squeezing him tight once again. Mordred didn’t reply. In a minute Merlin asked, “Did you tell Will that it meant?”

“Nope,” Mordred laughed. “Told him it was something subtle about threesomes and he got right on it.” Merlin laughed as well.

“My last boyfriend was really horrible,” He said quietly when he had his breath again. He smiled up at Mordred. “You shared, so I think it’s only fair I do, as well,” he explained. “He lied to me and treated me like shit and… actually tried to steal from me.”

“He didn’t.”

“Oh, he did! I don’t know how I got so tangled with him in the first place, but it was hell ending that relationship.” Merlin sighed. “Morgana helped me out of it, and so did her brother. They had my back – Morgana gave me a couch to sleep on, and both she and Arthur threatened to beat him up more than once,” Merlin laughed. Mordred chuckled with him. “She knew how hard it was for me back then, wanted me to be happy. So she waited until I recovered, I guess, and then threw every guy she knew at me, sure I’d like one of them and get settled in the end.”

“And she was right?”

Merlin scoffed. “Doesn’t have to be a question, love,” he said and kissed him. Mordred was pretty sure he had hearts in his eyes when they pulled apart. “

“Wait a second, though,” Merlin frowned. “Three spirals for three times. You only mentioned two. What was the third?”

Mordred bit his lip before he answered. “I nearly suffocated after choking on popcorn while I was in the cinema.”

“You didn’t.”

“I did! And I was with someone then, can you imagine? Took me years before I tried going on a date again.” Merlin was still staring at him dubiously. “It took me _you_ before I dared go on a date again,” he added and Merlin’s features softened. He rolled himself on top of Mordred and straddled his hips.

“You didn’t nearly choke to death in the cinema,” he said.

“Fine, I didn’t,” Mordred huffed. “But it was a close thing.”

“Nowhere as close as the other two.”

“You’re right. In fact, if you take a closer look you’ll notice one of the spirals is shorter than the other two, symbolizing the lack of an actual threat the last time.” When Merlin actually leaned in closer to look at the tattoo, Mordred laughed. Merlin growled and kissed him quiet.

“You got me,” he said grudgingly.

“I got you,” Mordred said and he realized how soft it’d come out when Merlin’s expression sobered a bit. “And I’m keeping you,” he whispered as he wrapped an arm around him.

Merlin beamed at him and kissed him all over his cheeks and forehead, silently swearing he’d stay.


End file.
